ReligionsandCults

Judaism
by Jared and Taylor

Origins

Remember when Moses recieved the Ten Commandments from God and gave them to the Israelies? this is when Judaism began.
- They describe the start as "Hashem", or God giving the nation of Israel the Ten commandments.
Remember the forty years the Israelites spent in the desert because of their denial of God? this is when they "practiced" Judaism.
- They describe this practice as wondering in the desert for forty years as Moses read to them from the Torah.
The desert they wondered in was the Siani Desert.

Key Beliefs

One of the first is an easy one, the belief in God.
Another is the Covenant that God made with Abraham.
A man named RamBam came up with 13 principles of faith. They are as follows:
1. God exists
2. God is one and unique
3. God is incorpreal
4. God is eternal
5. Prayer is to be directed to God alone and no other
6. The words of the prophets are true
7. Moses' prophecies are true, and Moses was the greatest of the prophets
8. The Written Torah (first 5 books of the Bible) and Oral Torah (teachings now contained in the Talmud and other writings) were given to Moses
9. There will be no other Torah
10. God knows the thoughts and deeds of man
11. God will reward the good and punish the wicked
12. The Messiah will come
13. The dead will be resurrected
A thing to notice is that several of these beliefs are similar to Christian views, such as points 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, 11, 12, and 13.

Religious Practices

The Mitzvot
- Its literal meaning is "commandments", refering solely to the commandments in the Torah.
The 613 Commandments:
- Maimonides, a Jewish philosopher, made a list of all the commandments he found in the Bible. Here is a full list: http://www.religionfacts.com/judaism/practices/613.htm
The Rabbinic Law
- It is simply considered to be a binding of the Mitzvot; however, this law can be changed, though it is rare that it ever does change.
- 3 types of Rabbinic Law:
  1. gezeirah - is used to prevent any unintentional breaking of the mitzvot
  2. takkanah - is a compilation of laws that were created by rabbis and not found in the Torah
  3. minhag - is used to prolong religious holidays (at least, that is how it seems to be interpreted)
The Synagogue
- Fundamentally, this is the Jewish house of prayer.

Sacred Texts

Sacred Places

Interesting Facts

Judaism is the only religion that has lost its sacred land and regained it yet again.
The Sabbath begins on Friday, sundown, and ends on Saturday, sundown.
Judaism is one of the oldest religions.

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